Toll Transport Pty Ltd Summary

[2023] FWCA 2725

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

Toll Transport Pty Ltd

(AG2023/2757)

APPLICATION FOR APPROVAL OF THE TOLL HELICOPTER PILOTS ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2022

Airline operations
COMMISSIONER JOHNS	MELBOURNE, 25 AUGUST 2023

Application for approval of the Toll Helicopter Pilots Enterprise Agreement 2022

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the TOLL HELICOPTER PILOTS ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2022 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Toll Transport Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

The Employer has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the agreement.

Subject to the undertakings referred to above, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

The Australian Federation of Air Pilots being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s.201(2) of the Act, I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 1 September 2023. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 December 2025.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case of Toll Transport Pty Ltd involved a dispute over the approval of the Toll Helicopter Pilots Enterprise Agreement 2022. The application was brought before the Fair Work Commission (FWC), where the matter was heard and determined. The central issue before the Commission was whether the proposed enterprise agreement met the statutory requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the FWC needed to consider if the agreement contained the necessary provisions for minimum terms and conditions of employment and if it was consistent with the overarching objectives of the Act.

The legal issues that the FWC was required to decide upon included whether the agreement provided adequate protections for employee entitlements, including wages, hours of work, and leave provisions. Furthermore, the FWC had to ensure that the agreement complied with the principles of genuine agreement and freedom of choice, which are fundamental to the Act. The FWC also needed to consider if the agreement was in the public interest and whether it provided for a fair and efficient industrial relations system.

In examining these issues, the FWC found that the Toll Helicopter Pilots Enterprise Agreement 2022 contained the necessary provisions for minimum terms and conditions. The agreement was deemed to provide adequate protections for the pilots' entitlements, including wages, reasonable hours of work, and leave provisions. The FWC concluded that the agreement was consistent with the principles of genuine agreement and freedom of choice, and that it was in the public interest. Consequently, the FWC approved the enterprise agreement, finding that it met the statutory requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

Toll Transport Pty Ltd

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established